Leap Year Surprise!

Tomorrow is February 29th, Happy Leap Year everyone! I've always loved Leap Year. There's something about getting an extra day that makes me giddy. Since it only comes once every four years, we thought we'd cook up a little something just for you.

We put our thinking caps on at lunch yesterday and started scheming. We talked about how February is also American Heart Month. Since we're one of the companies that is partnering with Stitch Red to help women in the fight against heart disease we thought we could combine the two.













A couple of sandwiches and a pile of yarn later we came up with a plan: For one day only, you can buy up to two skeins of Shepherd Sock in 11ns Bold Red for just $20.00 each! That includes shipping in the US only. (If you live somewhere else, contact us and we'll figure somethng out.) In return, we'll donate $1 per skein to The Heart Truth.








Easy peasy. You get yarn and The Heart Truth gets a little something too. Everyone wins.

THE DETAILS: Payment MUST be made through our Paypal account. Send the money to yarn@lornaslaces.net. In the message box, please enter all of your mailing information so we know where to send the yarn. We can't be responsible for yarn not recieved if you don't tell us where to send it! We'll make the promotion available until 12:00 midnight on February 29th.

Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer

Here's a sneak peak at one of the patterns that will be in the Spring/Summer issue of Vogue Knitting.



















Even though we didn't have a really cold and snowy winter, it was still grey and dreary. The Sage (43ns) Solemate hints at spring and that feel so good right now. It makes my eyes happy.

Beading seems to be all the rage these days. So many shawls are including it and I'm liking the idea of having in on socks too. Not every pair, I'm not that crazy, but it'd be nice to have a few in the sock drawer. Especially since I'm seeing skirts with sneakers and such everywhere.

Speaking of sneakers we had a conversation around the lunch table earlier in the week about what we called athletic shoes. We all had a different answer. Tennis shoes? Gym shoes? Trainers? I called them tennis shoes until I was in high school. Then I started dating a guy whose dad worked for Converse. He called them sneakers and that's what I've called them ever since. What term do you use?

Two in One Day!!

Hi everyone! Amanda here. You may know me from Ravelry, Twitter, or maybe from here. Occasionally I like to steal the blog and away from Beth. Today I just couldn't help myself so bear with me. ;-)

I think we can all remember back to when we were little kids and all the fun things we wanted to be when we grew up. Some of us wanted to be firemen or cowgirls or doctors or lawyers. I was a little different. See I was raised by a cosmetologist in a house with a subscription to Vogue. There are only two things I thought about being when I grew up. First was the practical, a hair dresser, and second was the dream...the unattainable...I wanted to work in fashion! Specifically I wanted to be a buyer for Macy's or Bloomingdale's. I had dreams of fashion week and world travel.

Now we are all grown and find that few of us were brave enough to be firemen or geographically capable of being cowgirls. A lot of us never found the determination and skill to be a doctor or a lawyer. I may not have ended up as a buyer sitting front row in Paris but I did reach my dream...I get to work in fashion! It may not be what I thought it would be through the eyes of a child flipping through the September issue on the living-room floor but it is fashion all the same. I consider myself immensely lucky. I get to create color, help set trends and work along side amazingly talented designers as they make stunning garments using our yarns.

Yesterday I had one of those moments where I truly see how lucky I am. Two absolutely gorgeous sweaters were release by two incredible designers. Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark and Amy Christoffers. I thought you might all like to have a peek!

First up is Campbell & 2nd. This lovely summery top was designed in Solemate to show off one of the brand new colors Campbell. (keep an eye on the blog for a post on all the new colors) I just love the asymmetry of the lace motif, girly and a bit tough at the same time. Mercedes has a great eye for color and shape. I am sure you will love this sweater.























Next is Pomme de pin Cardigan. I am a complete sucker for a cardigan and I think the same can be said for Amy. Anyone who knows me will tell you that my official uniform is boots, dark jeans, a tank top and a cardigan. This cardigan looks exceptionally cozy. Knit in Shepherd Sport in the popular color Patina is versatile for a lot of temperatures and light enough to be wearable without adding too much bulk. A win win if you ask me.
















Anyway...I hope you all enjoyed (or were at least mildly entertained by) my tangent.

xo

Hearts and Pins.

Wow, it's Valentine's Day again already. For some reason, I feel like I've seen even more heart/red stuff than ever this year. Maybe that's because I've fallen prey to that enormous time sucking machine site known as Pinterest. You think Facebook is bad? Face book is nothing compared to Pinterest. I've even created a page just for Red.

You may have seen our friend, the red yarn heart, on Pinterest. He decided to take a little walk with us today.















The walk started in Lakeview. We styled this photo to make sure the red Jeep was driving by at just the right moment.
















It was just a hop, skip and jump over to Wrigley Field.
















Ice skating anyone?















And we found a bunch of friends.

















Hope your day is marvy.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

You're going to have to forgive me if I get a little weepy while I write this post. You see, today is the ninth anniversary of Lorna's Laces in Chicago. All I can think of is how lucky I am to work in yarn.

First things first, I want to thank Lorna Miser for creating Lorna's Laces.














I also need to thank her for trusting me with to carry on her legacy. It couldn't have been easy for her to let it go. Nor could I have asked for a better friend or mentor. The story of how I came to be the shepherd of Lorna's Laces is here.

Then there's the Lorna's Laces crew. They are a pretty great bunch.


















They come to work every day and do what I ask of them. Each and every one of them has learned to speak a strange and wonderful language I like to call "Elizabethan". They decipher the crazy bits and pieces of paper that makes up the dye list. Sometimes they do things before I know they need to be done.

Then there are the people that pay us the compliment of carrying our yarns in their shops. A LYS owner is a very special kind of person who understands us all. They help us with our projects, remind us that green is our best color, point us in the right direction when we go astray, and provide us with a second home and sense of community.

Last but not least is the stitcher. You are the reason I get up every morning to make pretty string. You make Lorna's Laces look great. It's an honor to be allowed to be part of your life. Because of you we swaddle babies and warm feet. We become whimsical hats and serious scarves. Beautiful shawls and sturdy sweaters.

I am so lucky to work in yarn. Thank you.